Ducks lose composure, then game to Red Wings

ANAHEIM – You can learn from past mistakes and do better in future situations but you don't change who you are at the core and the high-strung Ducks snapped Sunday night.

The prospect of consecutive losses became real when their latest attempt to pull off another stunning comeback produced a different set of late-game theatrics. Instead of delivering a tying goal against Detroit, it was three Ducks stars being sent off the ice.

Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry and Teemu Selanne were not around at the finish of a 2-1 loss to the Red Wings, which became the Ducks' second consecutive home loss at Honda Center and the first pair of regulation losses tied together.

Trailing by the one goal and having pushed Detroit throughout the third period, the Ducks were trying to keep the puck in the Wings' zone when Getzlaf was called for tripping Valtteri Filppula. At least that is how referee Kevin Pollock saw it.

Getzlaf didn't see it that way and flung his stick as he jawed at Pollock for a lengthy period. Perry and Selanne also joined in and the Ducks, who had pulled goalie Jonas Hiller for an extra attacker, saw their rally short-circuited.

The Ducks' captain was just as hot in the dressing room for several minutes but managed to simmer down long enough to avoid having to dig into his wallet.

"I'm not going to comment like I want to," Getzlaf said. "It's not my place right now. I'm trying to stay composed and make it perfectly clear that I'm not frustrated just with the final play of the game. That's not what this is all about.

"I don't want to take anything away from the Detroit Red Wings tonight.

They played hard and their goaltender played great."

Asked if it was tough to not say what he really felt, Getzlaf said, "Extremely. It's the nature of the game. We're going to bite our tongue and push forward right now."

Getzlaf got an additional two minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct and a 10-minute misconduct. Perry also picked up a 10-minute misconduct while Pollock gave one to Selanne and added a game misconduct for good measure.

The three chatterboxes have largely contained their beefing at officials this season but there was no stopping them on this occasion.

"It's not understandable and it is understandable at the same time," Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau said. "I can see the frustration in their voices. It was a pretty ticky-tack little call with 33 seconds to go in the game or whatever the time was.

"But it was a lot of pent-up emotions coming out from not just today but for a lot of games in recent memory."

The Ducks did manage to put a final scare into the Red Wings as Cam Fowler got free for a golden chance in front but his shot went right into Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard in the final seconds, marking the last of 33 saves made.

This was more about Howard, who also turned aside 33 shots in the Red Wings' 5-1 victory Friday night but this one saw him being challenged repeatedly after the Ducks got their game going in the second period.

A deflection goal by Daniel Cleary and a rebound score by Drew Miller were all that Howard needed in one-upping Ducks goalie Jonas Hiller, who made 19 stops. Getzlaf got the Ducks' goal in the second with a clean snap shot.

The Ducks were left with feeling better about an honest effort after being routed two nights before as their 13-game home winning streak crashed and burned.

"We were all over them," Ducks winger Andrew Cogliano said. "We had a couple of shifts there where they were out there for maybe a minute-ten. It's just a matter of putting the puck in.

"You put so much in to get chances. There's a lot of different looks we had. It's just they didn't go in. You've got to give some credit to their (defensemen) and their goalie for sure."

Two losses have kept the Ducks from padding their sizable Pacific Division lead but they don't have long to move on from Sunday as San Jose comes back in Monday night for the finale of a tough five-game homestand.

"When Chicago lost one, they (then) lost two and they started to get back into the swing of things," Boudreau said. "I think it's a little bit different situation here.

"At the same time, as long as we don't dwell on it to the point where we're feel sorry for ourselves now, we'll be fine."

DVORAK SIGNED

The Ducks signed winger Radek Dvorak for the remainder of the season but it remains to be seen if he'll actually play for them because the veteran must clear waivers since he played in Switzerland earlier this season.

The deal is potentially worth a pro-rated $675,000 but Dvorak could be picked off waivers by another team seeking forward help.

Dvorak, 36, has played in 1,191 games with Florida, the New York Rangers, Edmonton, St. Louis, Florida, Atlanta and Dallas. He had four goals and 17 assists along with a minus-16 rating in 73 games with Dallas last season.